*Naresh Jariwala*
*Naresh Jariwala*
Piping at the Alt Fechenheim site*Naresh Jariwala*more than 50% over the course ofLamotte in France, which also offers 12 months, there was no choice process development capabilities, First to go, even before Brunk but to close. WeylChem and the and at the WeylChem US site at himself arrived, was Miteni, site owner, Clariant, are now Elgin, South Carolina, project an Italian specialist in dismantling the equipment and leaders are in place to build up electrofluorination. The site at cleaning the site up for eventual modern ‘plug-and-play’ processes. Trissino, near Vicenza, was closed redevelopment as a business park. in late 2018 and the equipment In the immediate future, WeylChem sold to Mittal Industries in India. Revamped CMO offer will seek to build a state-of-the-art The second step, says Brunk, supply chain, including professional Hydrochem, also Italian and a was to look into the custom demand and production planning. specialist in chlorinated toluenes, manufacturing offer and make The aim, says Brunk, is to ensure was next. With one exception, the the company a more attractive that multi-step synthesis runs products were no longer generating partner to customers. He set about smoothly across multiple sites. the value the technology offered recruiting experienced marketeers, and were being undercut in the starting with a project management The third step will be further market. The company was sold in organisation to steer and run investment in those parts of the March to Esseco, which is setting up projects effectively and track the business ICIG sees as driving an electrolysis plant for caustic company’s activities. The goal was future growth. WeylChem, says soda and using the by-product to answer customers within 14 days Brunk, has good technologies and chlorine internally. of receiving a request. capabilities and skilled people, and has even inherited certain In April, WeylChem announced In addition, InnoTec was processes well suited to its future the closure of its site at Frankfurt- established, bringing together the strategy, such as continuous Griesheim. This former Höchst analytics, process development manufacture. Conversely, it also complex once employed 3,300 and piloting capabilities of has a lot of dedicated equipment people but was down to 110 and AllessaChemie and AllessaSyntec that is expensive to adapt for new bore infrastructure costs four to five at Alt Fechenhim in the suburbs of products, although these processes times higher than those of other Frankfurt and the industrial park at can compete with Asian suppliers. sites. Once the anchor customer in Höchst. Separately, at WeylChem the polymers market found that it ICIG continues to invest in would have to reduce its demand WeylChem’s custom manufacturing for Griesheim’s main product by activities and has approved several million euros in infrastructure spending. At Allessa, three of the six facilities are equipped for traditional chemistry in water. Since modern methods demand solvents, a thermal oxidiser will be installed to handle them. There will also be investment into high temperature steam for high pressure reactions and cooling circuits for low temperature (down to -30°C) reactions. At Lamotte, meanwhile, WeylChem is investing to make the equipment more flexible. This includes manifolds to connect vessels together quicker, as well as in isolation for solids, and thin film evaporator distillation equipment made from high value materials like Hastelloy for liquid purification. The company will also install more Hastelloy vessels to address mismatches between glass-lined and steel equipment and between reaction and work-up. At Frankfurt-Höchst, Brunk adds, WeylChem has an ideal infrastructure for side-chain chlorination, including a rooftop P Find more at www.specchemonline.com
*Naresh Jariwala*WeylChem is headquartered at the historic former Cassella site in Alt Fechenheim P thermal oxidiser, as well as says Brunk. “We have seen value from custom manufacturing to space to expand. It will continue to in Elgin and we helped them to line products and care chemicals. invest here, in large part because develop and supported them.” “We feel quite comfortable,” says of growing demand for specialised The operation is now only 20% Brunk. “If you look at the custom chlorination in the agrochemical agrochemical-dependent, also manufacturing market, we have sector and others. offering polymers, lubricants and a unique situation where all aerospace intermediates. customers are changing their supply The production train for halogen chain so in order not to be entirely exchange reactions at Griesheim he WeylChem has recently closed its dependent on China any more. This describes as “one of the jewels of – hitherto mainly pigment-oriented is a good opportunity for us.” WeylChem Griesheim”. Currently, – hydrogenation capabilities in this is being transferred to the Griesheim. However, hydrogenation While there is no specific earnings Allessa site and the company is seen as a key growth chemistry target from ICIG, Brunk sees a is working with customers on and the company plans to invest 20% EBITDA as ideal, because it commitments for future supply. to expand its position in Allessa, enables the company to make its Lamotte or CBW for multi-step investments from cash received Commitment to US projects. Exactly where will depend rather than through customer The Elgin site was “in a financially in part on where key customers investment. This could be attainable very critical phase” in 2018, Brunk want it, because this is an expensive – all of the budgets and targets for says. When acquired, it was 80% technology to invest in. 2019 had already been hit by the dependent on crop protection and end of October, despite downturns most of its products were generic, Brunk describes where WeylChem in the automotive, coatings and so it suffered in the agro downturn is in terms of its processes, and electronics markets. “The market is in 2014. However, ICIG viewed the where it wants to be, within a in our favour and we are seeing the ability to offer both EU- and US- diamond shape. The four corners first fruits of our work,” he says. £ based CMO services, which is still are flexibility, prioritisation, process quite unusual, as vital to its forward adherence and resources. Currently, CONTACT strategy. he says, the company – particularly Allessa, Elgin and InnoTec – is Teresa Hirth In the last 24 months, the closest to the flexibility corner. The Marketing Communications company has brought in new aim is to be right in the middle, Manager management and sales and emphasising process adherence WeylChem International marketing teams, who have turned more, “because you can’t run an GmbH Elgin from loss-making to positive organisation like it is in emergency cashflow generation. Now, the aim is mode all the time”. +49 69 506 820 2587 to use these proceeds to clean up the [email protected] site and build it up in CMO services. Over the next three to four www.weylchem.com years, a further mid-double-digit “This is a perfect example of how million sum will be spent, with the I want to develop the company,” emphasis swinging back somewhat ! !
All that Jazz *Naresh Jariwala* The inaugural SOCMA Week takes place in New Orleans BACK IN THE DAY when SOCMA £ 11.10-12.00 – Concurrent £ Notch Communications, a full owned and organised Informex, sessions: Block 2, including service B2B marketing agency New Orleans was a perennial Emerging Digital Technology £ National Chemical Emergency favourite venue for the show. Trends in the Chemical Industry Centre (NCEC), the UK-based Now, the trade association for (Industry Trends) emergency response specialist the US speciality chemicals sector £ 13.10-14.00 – Concurrent £ Pace Analytical, a regulatory is returning to the ‘Big Easy’ for sessions: Block 3, including consulting firm a launch event that effectively Navigating Disruptive Innovations £ AlliantGroup, a speciality tax replaces the former SOCMA in the Chemical Industry services provider Dinner in New York. (Manufacturing/Ops) £ FitNetworks, a specialist in IT £ 14.10-15.00 – Concurrent network security SOCMA Week, which takes sessions: Block 4, including £ CliftonLarsonAllen, another audit place at the Royal Sonesta on 4-6 Risk Mitigation in the Chemical and tax advice firm December, is described as “the Supply Chain (Commercial) and catalyst for professionals in the Understanding the Paradigm Shift in On Friday 6 December, three specialties value chain to trade the US New Chemicals Programme SOCMA roundtables take place from operational best practices, discuss & Importance of Supply Chain 9.00 to 12.00 with the themes of industry trends and identify solutions Communication (Policy) Industry Development, Government to pain points with colleagues £ 15.40-16.30 – Concurrent Relations and Compliance & facing the same issues”. It includes sessions: Block 5, including Global Stewardship over 20 educational sessions in Perspectives on International Trade four tracks (Commercial, Policy, (Policy) and Economic Forecast for £ Industry, covering ChemSectors Manufacturing/Ops and Industry the Chemical Industry (Industry downstream trends, lead-sheet Trends). Trends) programme trends and takeaways £ 18.00-20.00 – Networking dinner and member capabilities mapping The week begins on 4 & awards presentation £ Government Relations, a meeting December, with the SOCMA board of the Environmental, Health & Safety of governors meeting from 13.00 There is also a small exhibition and International Trade committees to 16.00 and a grand opening alongside this, taking place on the £ Compliance & Stewardship, reception from 17.00 to 18.30. morning of 5 December only. The covering best practices and takeaways Most of the action takes place on exhibitors will all be at individual from the Performance Improvement 5 December, with key times as tables within the exhibit area. Awards and the modernisation of follows: Those listed at the time of going to ChemStewards £ press were: £ 7.00 – Registration open & CONTACT breakfast in exhibit hall £ Highland Tank, a supplier of steel £ 8.00-9.00 – President’s address storage tanks Sandra Lehrer & business meeting £ Knoell USA, the arm of a global SOCMA £ 9.10-10.00 – Concurrent supplier of scientific consulting and sessions: Block 1, including analytical services [email protected] Demystifying Toll Agreements £ Net at Work, a full-service www.socma.org (Commercial) and Specialty technology and business consultancy Chemical End Use Markets Perspectives (Manufacturing/Ops) Find more at www.specchemonline.com
Events Calendar*Naresh Jariwala* SOCMA Week Specialty & Custom Chemicals 4-6 December 2019: America Royal Sonesta, New Orleans, Louisiana, US 10-12 February 2020: Omni Hotel, Fort Worth, Texas, US The inaugural event for professionals in the specialities value chain “to trade operational best Table-top exhibition for suppliers of chemicals practices, discuss industry trends and identify and services to the custom and speciality sectors, solutions to pain points”, SOCMA Week replaces with a North American base. The focus is on the the former Annual Dinner in New York and chemical products and technologies that have includes parallel track discussions on all aspects applications across a diverse range of speciality of the industry chemical end-uses www.socma.org www.chemicalsamerica.com Scientific Update Winter Process CAC 2020 Chemistry Conference 24-26 February 2020: 9-11 December 2019: SNIEC, Shanghai, China Birmingham Conference Centre, Birmingham, UK The China International Agrochemical & Crop Annual technical conference on pharmaceutical Protection show returns for the 20th time, process chemistry organised by the leading player alongside sister equipment and fertilisers shows. It in the field, including industrial case studies, is co-located for the 11th time with a conference keynote presentations and a flow chemistry short on all aspects of the agrochemicals industry course, among many other things www.cacshow.com www.scientificupdate.com 4th European Chemistry Pacifichem Partnering 15-20 December 2019: 25-27 February 2020: Honolulu, Hawaii, US Kap Europa, Frankfurt, Germany Pacifichem 2020 will be the eighth in the series This event brings together innovative start-ups and of scientific conferences that take place every established chemical companies for technology five years. It is co-sponsored by multiple Pacific partnering, featuring a dedicated, parallel session Basin chemical societies, including the ACS and for pitches (six minutes for SMEs, 12 minutes for its counterparts in Canada, Japan, China, South large companies) and partnering, together with a Korea, Australia and New Zealand small exhibition www.pacifichem.org www.european-chemistry-partnering.com IBioIC20 PCHi China 2020 5-6 February 2020: 26-28 February 2020: University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK SWEEC, Shanghai, China Sixth annual conference and exhibition for the PCHi is the main sourcing platform for the white biotech sector, featuring member and – personal care industry in China and is said to for the first time – business service showcases, “provide the most effective business platform for as well as fringe events. It is attended by domestic and international ingredient suppliers over 450 people to engage manufacturers of cosmetic, personal www.ibioic.com care and household products”. Multiple trade associations support it www.pchi-china.com/en Find more at www.specchemonline.com
*Naresh Jariwala*
*Naresh Jariwala*
*Naresh Jariwala*
*Naresh Jariwala*
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